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Recently, Cornell University researchers asked a group of people a simple question: "How do you know when you're through eating dinner?"

The answer might seem obvious. After all, doesn't everyone push the plate away when they feel full? Well, no. The leanest people do, according to the scientists, but people who are overweight rely more on what are known as "external cues." For example, guys packing a few extra pounds tend to stop eating when . . .

1. Their plates are clean.
2. Everyone else in their group is finished.
3. The TV show they're watching is over.

Unfortunately, these cues have nothing to do with how they feel physically. "People's brains are often out of touch with their bodies," says C. Peter Herman, Ph.D., a University of Toronto expert on appetite control. "And when eating becomes mindless, overeating becomes routine."

The key player in all of this appears to be a region of your brain called the left posterior amygdala, or LPA. This area monitors the volume of food in your stomach during a meal. Fill your gut to a comfortable level, and the LPA tells your brain to drop the fork. Trouble is, it delivers that information at dial-up speed in a DSL world. "Many men consume calories faster than their bodies can say, 'Stop!'" explains Herman. "So they look to external cues to guide their consumption."

The bottom line is this: To shrink your gut, you need to start listening to it. We've scoured the science and tapped the top experts to help you learn how to do just that. Use these seven simple strategies, and you'll fill up without filling out.